Endings, Missteps, and New Beginnings
by Brown Eyes Parker
Summary: Post-Red John, in the wake of the serial killer's death, Jane looks back and realizes that somewhere along the line, he has fallen in love with Teresa Lisbon. But starting a relationship won't be easy. Moving on will be hard. There are people and circumstances who stand in their way. Spec piece. Slightly inspired by spoilers for the second half of season 6. Rated T.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **

**Bruno Heller owns the sandbox, I'm just playing with his toys for a little bit.**

**Rated: T**

**Author's Note:**

**A few things about things about this before we begin. This is a total spec piece, I am writing it based on conclusions **_**I've **_**drawn from spoilers for the second half of season 6. Number 2, just because Red John surrenders easily in my story doesn't mean I think that's the way it'll actually pan out on screen. I just wanted to deal with it quickly. Lastly, I didn't name Red John based on the suspect list because everyone has their own pick as a suspect. You can put a face to the name, if you'd like to. I, myself, envisioned somebody as I wrote this chapter, but I will not tell you who it is.**

**.**

**Part 1 – Endings**

After a solid decade of searching, they had finally discovered Red John's real identity. There had been a hurried frenzy to catch him, and caught him they had. He had been set to strike again when they found him; he didn't even react when they burst in on him and the young woman he was going to kill. He just peeled off his mask and smiled at them.

"About time you caught me," he had whispered, his voice an eerie mixture of calm and menacing. "What took you so long? Didn't I trip up enough for the powerful, all-knowing Patrick Jane to finally put the last puzzle pieces into place?"

"Are you questioning my skills and abilities?" Jane had asked, fixing the serial killer with the steeliest gaze that Teresa Lisbon had ever seen from him.

"I would _never_ question your skills or abilities Patrick! I've been admiring them for far too long to do something like that. But maybe I'm suggesting that you're losing your edge in your old age. It happens to the best of us. I mean look at me, we're all standing here today. That would have never happened when I was younger. Heck, it would have never happened six _months_ ago. But I've grown tired of this game, I'm ready to retire."

"I've heard that one before," Jane replied bitterly. "The last time someone said to me it turned out he wasn't the real Red John."

"I can assure you that I am indeed the _real_ Red John. Now are you going to arrest me or what?"

"What makes you think we're going to arrest you?"

"Well, it's your only other option isn't it? You aren't going to kill me, not when the pretty Agent Lisbon is standing right beside you. You've laid so much groundwork with _her_ that you wouldn't want to mess up any opportunities you have with her. Not now. And you don't even have the satisfaction of killing me in self-defense, since I haven't touched either of you. I haven't so much as pointed a gun at you."

Jane looked at Lisbon wearily, there was so many questions in his eyes. She was thinking the same things, like what if they tried to arrest him and he chose _that_ moment to react, to use that opportunity to try and escape, or to try and kill one of them. After all, he was a crafty man, and he didn't always keep his word. Who was he to say that he would come quietly when his freedom was at stake? For all they knew, he could be playing them.

But. . .

It was a risk that they had to take.

Lisbon took her handcuffs out from her back pocket and approached him slowly, frightened that if she moved too quickly that her worst fears would come true. He dropped his weapon and held his wrists out for her, listening quietly while she spouted off his Miranda rights. Then he let her lead him away with Jane following close behind, making sure nothing went amiss.

He was so sure something would go wrong, the final act was all too easy.

But his fears were unfound, everything went off without a hitch; Red John answered all of their questions, he made a full confession and a few weeks later, his case was taken to trial. The families of the victims had been waiting a decade to put a face to the man who had killed their loved ones. The state of California had been waiting to see the madman's reign of terror put to an end. The people in higher ups decided they owed everybody a swift and speedy trial.

**.**

The jury found him guilty on all counts of charges brought against him, the judge sentenced him to death by legal injection. After everything Red John had done, after all the women that he had brutally slaughtered, it hardly seemed like a fair punishment. He would die a quick and a relatively painless death, he wouldn't know a fraction of the pain he had inflicted on the people he had killed. It would all be over in a matter of a few seconds.

Jane found comfort in the fact that Red John would not be spending the rest of his life in the comfort of a jail cell with the luxuries of cheeseburgers, HBO, and fellow prisoners he could frighten into doing his bidding. He would be gone forever, nobody would have to be afraid that he would escape and that the cycle would start all over again. He and the rest of the families who had lost love ones could at least find a little bit of closure and try to move on with their lives.

**.**

"Are you going to his execution?"

"Are you?" Jane asked, not looking at her.

"Mandy Bosco asked me to go with her," Lisbon confessed. "It's been tough on her, you know. . ."

"I'm sure," Jane answered, still not taking his eyes away from the Sacramento skyline. "Especially since she wasn't sure if Sam loved her or not, not after they moved here and she knew you two were working together."

Lisbon ignored him. "I think it would be good for you to go, maybe you'll finally get the closure you've been looking for."

"That was taken away from me when he let us arrest him without fuss or muss," Jane said. "I had put away my desire to kill him the way he had killed my wife and daughter. But I thought for sure one of us would get to kill him in self-defense, at least. But I didn't even get _that_."

"Oh Jane. . ." she whispered, not letting him know that _she_ had hoped for the very same thing. That she had _prayed_ even for an opportunity to put a bullet between Red John's eyes and watch him suffer the way he had watched others suffer for over a decade. "Please go with me. I'm not saying it'll help, but you never know until you try."

Jane sighed, finally looking at her. "Fine, if it'll make you happy, then I'll go with you. But don't expect me to magically feel better just because I got to watch the man who ruined my life die."

Lisbon shook her head and pushed her fingers through her hair, her eyes growing solemn. "Of course not."

But she was going to pray that it helped just a _little _bit.

**.**

The room was crowded with families who were searching for closure. There weren't enough chairs to go around, causing some people to have to stand against the walls. The room they were waiting in was too quiet, they were all holding their breath, waiting for the ending of their personal horror story. Waiting to close one chapter so they could finally open a new one and maybe ink _happily ever after_ at the end of their respective journeys.

Lisbon was sitting in between Jane and Mandy, whispering prayers for all the families but especially for Jane. When the guards brought Red John out, she reached for his hand and squeezed it gently. She was thankful when he didn't pull away and instead gripped onto her hand like it was a lifeline, like he was drawing from her strength.

They watched together as they strapped him down and plunged a needle in his vein. For a breathless second, she thought that there would be a big show and that somehow Red John would escape, he would laugh and say that he had won, that he would _always _win. But the only thing he did was start to sing a hymn, his voice faded as the drug started to work its way through his body. And then it was quiet.

Red John was no more.

**TBC… **

**.**

**Author's Note II:**

**Any thoughts on this first chapter? I would love to hear them! Any theories about who Red John is to **_**you**_**? I would love to hear that too, just click on the box and type whatever you'd like. I'm all eyes!**

**Until next time.**

**Holly, 10/21/2013_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Shout-Outs: Guest, Patresa, Ilovetea, Mentalgal, Elc41, Lalalupin, Rosepeony, lili3400, LetMeWalkTheEarthWithYou, and KimmyH for taking a chance on the first chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own one single thing. I'm laughing at the thought.**

**Rated: T**

**.**

**Chapter 2**

After Red John's execution, he walked around the CBI like a zombie. Lisbon thought she was getting a glimpse of the man that he was after his wife and daughter died. The man that he was before she had come into his life and plucked him out of the ocean he was floating in. He still smiled and engaged in conversation with her, he went to crime scenes and solved cases like the pro he was. But it wasn't the same, his smile wasn't as bright, his plans to close cases weren't as elaborate. He was existing and nothing else.

Lisbon watched him quietly and gave him all the space that he needed. She waited patiently for the day that he'd finally snap out of his funk and return to the man he was before they'd caught Red John, to return to the man he was before everything he'd been living for over the past decade had been taken away from him by a judge and jury.

She didn't have a choice because she was afraid if she didn't leave him alone then he would disappear forever. And she couldn't let him go. Not yet, not when. . . well, she wasn't quite ready to be honest with herself and admit any of the reasons she didn't want to see him go. She had ignored her longings for so long, had kept her feelings to herself for almost a decade she didn't know how to express them. She hadn't even realized she was in love with him. Not until she had been sitting beside him in a crowded room and holding his hand while they had waited for the execution of Red John.

It would have hardly been the right time to show her cards, to share her heart or bear her soul. Besides, she didn't know if what she was feeling was a case of pity or if she was confusing it with sisterly affection. She wanted to be sure before she said anything and made a complete fool of herself in the process. Jane had never showed a single sign that he was in love with her except for a stolen _love you_ that he took back the first chance he had. She never counted his flirting as showing interest in her because he flirted with lots of girls. It was the one way he could get what he wanted from people.

Although there had been times when he had looked at her or touched her differently than any of the women who had waltzed in and out of his life during cases they had investigated or towns they had visited. Sometimes she was sure he was looking her the way a man looked at a woman he was in love with. But then the moment was usually gone as soon as it came, the look of friendship was securely back in place. And she was certain she had imagined it, that maybe it was just wishful thinking on her part. She had always known until Red John had been put to rest, he wouldn't be moving on. That he wouldn't be falling in love with anyone.

And then after he had been caught, after the last of the paperwork had been filled out and filed, he needed time to grieve. He needed time to truly process what had happened, that his world was once again a Red John free environment.

So she waited for him to sort things out, she waited for him to maybe realize that he was in love with _her_ and to make the first move. because it was the right thing to do at the moment, because she didn't want "them" to be over before they'd even gotten a chance to begin. Because true love always waited and she was sure if they got the chance, they could have _true love_.

**.**

"I'm going to be okay," Jane told her.

Lisbon looked up from her paperwork. "What?"

"I can tell you're worried about me," Jane said. "You're giving me space and not saying anything because you're afraid if you push too hard, I'm going to leave I'm not though, not without telling you first. I just need some time to get my head back together and pick up the pieces. But you probably already figured that out, didn't you?"

"I did," Lisbon admitted, putting her pen down and going to join him on the couch. She hesitated for a moment and then pushed her fingers through his. "Hey Jane, I just wanted you to know that I'm here if you need anything and that I am perfectly willing to help you. . . in _any_ way that I can—"

"I know," Jane answered, tightening his grip on her hand, thankful for the touch of another human being. "And it means a lot to me, but I don't know if it's fair asking you to help. I don't know how you can help. . . just give me some more time, I'll come to you when I'm sure that I'm ready."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere either. I'll be waiting. . ." she trailed off, stopping while she was ahead.

"I know," Jane repeated, smiling at her. "Thank you."

Lisbon returned his smile. "You're welcome," she said quietly.

She got up to go back to her paperwork, but he pulled her back down beside him.

"Just stay a little bit longer," he requested softly. "Please."

"Okay," Lisbon agreed in a heartbeat, giving in without thinking about it.

She stayed with him for the rest of the afternoon. They didn't say a word to each other, but she didn't really care. Just being with him, just being able to hold his hand and knowing that he was right there beside her was enough for her in that moment. It was enough to fill her to the brim with hope and dream of a future that she had never even _dared _allow herself to think about before.

**TBC. . .**

**.**

**Author's Note:**

**This chapter KICKED my butt. I rewrote it so many times because it didn't feel right. Even now, it doesn't exactly feel right. But I wanted to post **_**something**_**, just to show I'm not abandoning this story. Anyways, tell me what you thought in the box below. I'd love to hear it! Have a safe and Happy Halloween. And try not to freak out too much about Sunday's episode.**

**Until next time!**

**Love,**

**Holly, 10/31/2013_**


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